Some 150 subway union members protest against Gov’t

Approximately 150 Metrorex trade union members staked out the government’s headquarters yesterday, dissatisfied with the fact that their salaries were not hiked as stipulated in their collective work contract, but also with the possibility that the subway will be transferred to the Bucharest City Hall, Mediafax informs.
The union members carried banners reading “CCM – Metrorex, Art.41, Paragraph 4 – Take the stipulation into account, otherwise goodbye!”, “the subway is not “Supernova,” it’s a subway, Mr. Sova!”, “ “safety has taken the backseat for you,” and “Ponta has entered a tailspin, we don’t want the subway at the City Hall.”
The protesters are dissatisfied with the fact that they have not received an answer to their demands, especially given the fact that they organized several protest actions throughout May, namely stakeouts and protest meetings at the Transportation Ministry, Metrorex and the government. Their demands consist of the scrapping of the draft government decision concerning the transferring of the subway to the Bucharest General Council or, of this decision remains unchanged, for the transfer to be made based on an organic law and a social agreement signed with the subway union, stipulating the keeping of all current employees and that the subway should be under the direct control of the Bucharest General Mayor. They also ask for the contract signed with SC Alstom Transport SA to be reanalyzed, the union members claiming that SC Metrorex SA is currently registering losses because of that contract.
Likewise, they also ask for the memorandum signed by Premier Victor Ponta on September 25, 2013, and for the collective work contract currently in force to be respected in what concerns a salary hike directly proportional with the inflation rate. “Failure to meet these main demands will lead to the continuation of the trade union struggle through various actions organized lawfully, including through the start of the general strike as soon as the current collective work contract expires,” the trade union members threatened.
In reply, Premier Victor Ponta stated that trade union leader Radoi was “the de facto owner” of Metrorex for many years, and the company registered only losses. “Both Metrorex and the Romanian Post have to be companies led by the government, not by trade unions, and the goal should be lowering the losses,” Ponta stated at the start of the government meeting.